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Spinning a yarn

91原创 Weavers and spinners Guild members are meeting monthly at LAC Gallery on Fraser Highway
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Members of the 91原创 Weavers and Spinners鈥 daytime spinning group work in a circle at the 91原创 Arts Council鈥檚 gallery on Fraser Highway. The group meets at the gallery on the first Thursday of each month; left: Surrey鈥檚 Lynne Anderson spins sheep鈥檚 wool from the Shropshires she raises as an 鈥榰rban farmer.鈥

Members of the 91原创 Weavers and Spinners Guild have found a cozy new place to practise their craft.

On a Thursday afternoon in early September about a dozen members of the guild鈥檚 daytime spinning group set up for the first time inside the 91原创 Arts Council building on the Fraser Highway one-way and went to work for a few hours.

The 91原创 City gallery, which is open to the public, will serve as the spinners鈥 meeting place on the first Thursday of every month, explained nine-year member Maureen Dones.

Visitors are welcome to stop by to watch them work and to ask any questions they might have. Part of the guild鈥檚 mandate is educating people about their processes and the materials they use.

Despite the group鈥檚 name, the 91原创 Weavers and Spinners draw members from as far afield as White Rock, Surrey, Aldergrove and Abbotsford.

So being able to meet in the middle is a plus.

鈥淭his (LAC gallery) is such a nice central location for us,鈥 said Dones.

Arranged in a large circle, the women work on wooden spinning wheels, each feeding through any of several natural fibres from sheep鈥檚 wool to llama, alpaca, goat and even rabbit.

The use of locally produced fibre is encouraged wherever possible, said Dones, who raises llamas on her property on the Aldergrove-Abbotsford border.

鈥淎nd we try to give it an artistic flair,鈥 she said.

In addition to the daytime spinners group, the guild includes an evening spinning group which meets at members鈥 homes, as well as a weavers group and an evening knitting group who call themselves the Crazy Clackers.

The guild has been in existence for more than 40 years and boasts about 100 members among its chapters, who gather as a collective on the third Tuesday of the month inside Sharon United Church at Murrayville鈥檚 Five Corners.

As well as giving demonstrations at the recent Country Celebration in Campbell Valley Park and Art in the Untamed Garden in Glen Valley, members are busy preparing for Beyond Fibre, their annual juried artisan sale, which takes place Nov. 2 and 3 at Fort 91原创 Community Hall, 9167 Glover Rd.

Among the rules of the show and sale is that participants must use natural, hand-spun fibres wherever possible 鈥 the more locally sourced, the better.

During the two day event, which runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, members will offer demonstrations of weaving, spinning, knitting and felting.

Visitors may purchase completed projects or gather supplies to create their own.

The show will also feature new and returning guest artisans, jewelry, pottery, stained glass, mixed media, photography and leather works.

 



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